The culture and how it affects ministry to kids

Taylorism: An Education Assessment

Taylorism came under the leadership of Frederick W. Taylor in the early twentieth century (Spring, 2011). Taylorism was known as pre-packaged scientific management like factory workers working under controlled environments. According to Au (2011), teachers use standardized testing and scripted curriculum in a controlled corporate environment in classrooms. Because of this pre-packaged curriculum, there are rigid controls placed on teachers and the curriculum is viewed as teaching to the standardized tests instead of teaching to student needs and styles. Teachers are viewed as forming factory workers through these controlled environments. School administrators, teachers, and legislators must realize the need for individualized student needs in how they plan, teach, and assess achievement. Not all students learn in the same methods; therefore, not all students can be assessed with the same techniques. Students at the pre-k level can be assessed through observation and interview as well as through forms of standardized testing. Older students can be assessed in similar methods based on their learning styles; however, standardized testing should not be the final assessment measures in determining student knowledge and achievement. These assessment techniques require more work on administrators and teachers, but allow them to perform more professionally rather than as factory-controlled workers.

Spring, J. (2011). The American School: A Global Context from the Puritans to the Obama Era. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Au, W. (2011). Teaching under the new Taylorism: high-stakes testing and the standardization of the 21st century curriculum. Journal Of Curriculum Studies, 43(1), 25-45. doi:10.1080/00220272.2010.521261